ONE SEES MUD -- ONE SEES STARS

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‘Two men looked through the same bars.
One sees mud, and one sees stars.’
-- F. Langbridge

This made me think... the ‘one sees mud’ part of it.

Because life as I have learned is just like that. And we are presented with similar situations but from the same vantage point of strife. Our visions are narrowed down or restricted by our minds which seem to understand only those which touch our pain when it feels pain. In pain we see more pain. In struggles we see more struggling, in hurt more hurting, in grief more grief, in darkness even more darkness. It seems to lose its grasp of joy the reason why we stay longer than it should within the sorry void of misery, mess, muck, and mud of our lives.

And this line too made me think... ‘and one sees stars.’

On a clear evening sky the stars shine oh so brightly taking one’s breath away as it praises its Creator. You do too with a prayer of thanks in the heart. As a child I stood so much awed by its wonder and beauty. Mom would always say.... ‘Look to the stars when your heart feels burdened. And find rest.’ It works every time. But apart from taking Mom’s advice literally, I also learned to take it several steps farther and higher as I grew older. Life is a good teacher. Indeed.

Life is tough; it never makes it easy for anyone. We all go through challenges, big or small, at some point of our lives or another. It’s a constant. We continuously journey the hills and valleys of our lives regardless of our brilliance, talent, titles, and the presence or absence of money.

There must be something more than just the sense of survival to get through everything.

And this I have learned that if you listen well enough and look hard enough behind the temporal frills of our mundane lives you will find a tiny spark within. A flickering steady flame right there in your heart which holds itself bravely through the long weary day and night and it waits to be rekindled again and again with every opportunity that rises to do so.

‘Two men looked through the same bars. One sees mud, and one sees stars.’

Hope. Faith. Positivity. God.

Have an unbelievably blessed day, everyone! Blessings!

YOU JUST GOTTA DO WHAT YOU GOTTA DO

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My friend has this funny way of saying................. 'You just gotta do what you gotta do!'

I always thought it was funny. But on second thought, it is wise.  Because that's the way life is actually lived, like it or not.

Life hits us with ups-and-downs. We'd rather have the ups more often, don't we? But it isn't so. We can't be ecstatically happy 24/7, neither is its opposite, too. Life isn't a 'flat line' because if it was that would mean that we're either in heaven or in hell. Heaven ---- forever happy;  hell --- forever miserable. Flat line.

So life is a big ferris wheel. Or maybe it could be a small one but definitely a ferris wheel. We go through stages... moods... stations... phases... intervals... alternates... an endless moving up and moving down again and again. Turning good, turning bad. Turning beautiful with a bushel of blessings, turning difficult (sometimes ugly) with hurdles or challenges.

But the fantastic side of it is that we cope.

After the long tears through the night, we wake up in the morn and cook pancakes for the family's breakfast. After a terrible bashing from your boss for something which probably isn't even your fault, you go back to your computer and do the monthly reports. After a huge let down from your spouse early in the day (just one of many), you look out the window with the hope of finding something to feed your weary soul and get on with the chores of the day. After seeing your dreams falling into bits and pieces, you go on to build new ones. Etc and etc.

We try to cope. 

And my friend is right....  you just gotta do what you gotta do. It's not because that's what it is but essentially.................  Because that's who we are.  We cope.

Because if you dig deeper into your core....  you will see that we are stronger than we give ourselves credit for. We are braver than we think. We have it in worthy measure what we thought we cannot or don't have  -----  faith and belief. Faith in life not being a monster that we think it is. Belief in one loving God who cares for us in spite of our weakness, flaws, and imperfections. Out of this is born our hope.

Yeah, we just gotta do what we gotta do. Rhythm of life and living.

But it can be beautiful.

I HAVE NOTHING AND YET EVERYTHING IN MY BACKPACK

I was sitting there enjoying my green tea frappe... yes, Starbucks... where else?! :-) While waiting for my daughter who went to National Book Store on an errand I overheard this conversation from the next table not far from mine. In a group of middle-aged women, one matronly-looking woman spoke.... "Ay naku, pera-pera lang yan. Tingnan mo lang kung gaano kabilis ang solusyon kapag nabigyan mo na."  -- In essence that meant ... "It's all about money. Money buys everything."

That got me to thinking. Back in the house as I sat at my desk the thoughts came tumbling out and I wrote...........

There’s nothing else I know. There’s no supernatural formula I could easily summon up to solve problems with. There’s no wise guru to teach me some special mantra to erase worrisome cares and woes. There’s no big fat bank account to ease my way through the rough and tumble grind of earthly struggle and strife. There’s no magic potion on my shelf which I could conveniently pluck out and slip into a mean person’s coffee to bring about a change of heart or mind.

But I know this.....

I travel through life’s journey with this special thing packed tightly inside my backpack. It’s a small thing lest you think it’s a grand magnificent piece of heavy treasure stacked in there alongside other stuff. But it is a treasure indeed and it glows albeit often small, sometimes strangely, at times falteringly, even faintly, neglected at some point, at odd moments I don’t feel it and yet its flame won’t snuff out nor disappear into thin air as you think it easily might. It glows steadily and amazingly considering it’s just the size of a mustard seed. It’s there regardless of how I feel.

I have my share of tough times too just like we all do and those things don’t and won’t stop because that is just what life is made of. I'm just a weak puny human being trying to make it in this crazy world. Yet I can say this much that it’s like I always land on a bean-bag each time. Faith is like a soft self-inflating bean- bag which catches you every time you fall. Oh maybe you’ll get some bumps and bruises here and there but who wouldn’t with a fall no matter its size. And yes you will feel depressed, lonely, disappointed, angry, afraid, sad and everything else miserable in the book of life. All of life is about feelings, too.

But it doesn’t kill you. In fact, it’s like warm comforting arms wrapping around you in a big glorious divine hug. It simply makes you feel so good that you always want to cry so much relieved. It’s like something or SOMEONE tells you ... ‘It’s okay, don’t be afraid; I’M here.’

It’s just wonderfully there. I, with blessed joy, thank God for this gift and treasure.

LOSS IS ALSO PART OF OUR LIFE JOURNEY

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Except for sporadic rains the weather has improved some. I hope this means we're saying bye to Habagat rains finally. That would be answered prayers for and from every nook and cranny of flooded Metro Manila and parts of Luzon.

Been talking to a good friend on the phone and the subject came to 'loss' and 'lose'... not in the usual grammar booboos we see in some but in how it plays a great part in our lives.

We both agreed that 'loss' is and will always be a part of the human journey.

It comes to us in different shapes, forms, sizes, color, intensity, diversity, and reason. Sometimes unexpectedly, suddenly, irrevocably. We are shaped by it just as much as the good times do. And too burdened by it when recovery doesn't come easily nor sooner.

She then posed this question  'what do we do?'

Good question, isn't it? But we also know the answer to that. It's simple. We do it everyday for or over some tiny or big loss that comes to us at fateful or predictable or odd times no matter the pain or unease it may cause us. We simply move on with life and living.

We may hurt awhile, lick our wounds, swim in buckets of tears, smash all the plates and glasses in the house in rage, or wither away within the solitary confines of our inner world. But just for awhile. Because in its own perfect time the small voice within makes itself heard with just two words..... 'Move on!'... and loudly. It isn't a small voice anymore...  And it won't take 'No' for an answer.

Though some may take longer and then some amazingly bounce back like a ping-pong ball effortlessly. But either way the command is to 'Move on!'.

Life and Time waits for no one, as we know it, and the journey is always forward. The road is almost always tough especially if it is the less traveled one. I should know, that was my journey. Rest when you can... who says you can't or shouldn't. But when you're done, pick yourself up again and move along down the road once more.

Then one day when all is quiet and still that same tiny voice within will tell you that everything's fine as you have grown wiser, gained greater courage while keeping in step with Time and everything it carries with it, including loss and pain. With this new understanding you turn back to the journey but this time renewed in strength, unafraid, and armed with faith transformed.

My good friend as she said goodbye on the phone said.... 'God is good.'  Oh yes, He's always with us. That tiny voice within never leaves us. Never does.

“God writes spiritual Mysteries on our heart, 

Where they wait silently for discovery.”
-- (Rumi)

Blessings, everyone. And let's try to share the blessings with those who need it right now.

(Big thanks to Mr. Quote Man for the quote.)

CLOSURE -- A BLESSING OR A BURDEN?

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Being fine-tuned to life and to things around you is a plus more than an inconvenient irritation. The latter unfortunately is how most people see most of life. I don't blame them there's more that hurts the eye or the mind or the heart than desired. What is happening now in the no longer revered walls of our congress goes top on that list. The bottom line of it all is it's a battle among the good, the bad, and the ugly. How it will end is anybody's guess. How it affects (you) us is our job.

Back to the fine-tuning.

I have observed and learned something about 'closure' from watching this TV show last night 'Burn Notice' (season 5; final season is 7).  Michael (the lead star) and his mom were talking about a young person who felt so hurt and pained by what happened to his sister caused by, of course, the bad guy in the show. It was something which she said (and I had to write it down immediately before it got lost) which struck me and it goes like this.....

"You know, people talk about closure, but I don’t buy it. People blast a hole in your life, it tends to stay open."

That made me think.

That hole in one's life therefore doesn't really disappear!? It's not just a skin-deep, superfluous, temporal thing that simply leaves on its own or goes away when the cause is eliminated (as in the TV show). It's there as real as potholes and bumps on our city streets which undergo a thousand makeovers but underneath it all still lie the hole or holes. Not wise therefore to simply gloss over a person's pain to make him feel better. So it doesn't work that way.

'A hole in your life' could mean a lot of things. A hurtful relationship, a betrayal, bad things happening to good people in your life, failures, rejection, and other mountain-size of unpleasantness, to say the least, that hits you straight where it can hurt most. That hole in your life is a core-deep experience. The core, as we know it to be, is usually that place within where you find your comfort safety and balance. But as life seems to have the knack for doing it... one day it sends something to blast through those safe walls and create a hole, a damn huge one, which then shakes up your world big time.

That hole never gets closed again, it stays open.. as Michael's mom said. But then at the end of the conversation, she hinted (smart lady) that it was up to us how to respond to it and said ... 'someone has to teach him...' and Michael went on to do just that.

What a great lesson..... to deal with the holes in our life... not meaning to close them as it never will. It may simply stay there as an ugly bump, a stinging sore and scar, or stays there as a gaping hole... defiant maybe and could hurt you again when someone or something rubs you the wrong way one day. But and BUT you don't let it define you as a person. Rather you let it be a reminder that you above all else can be stronger and smarter than you think. That you know about 'holes in our life'... it's part of the landscape, territory, tapestry, spectrum, diversity, and the reality of the good-the bad-and-the ugly ... of our existence, like it or not. That you have learned well and have become much wiser - smarter - better - and importantly in control. That you have learned to use the tools wired in you by the Divine to overcome challenge. Now isn't this what they say about true power? Honestly I'd like a piece of that. Don't you too?

Okay, I think I'll finish off season 5 tonight.
See you all next -ish!
Rainy Sunday but it's just rain.
Blessings, everyone!

WHAT BAG OF TOOLS DO YOU CARRY THROUGH LIFE

I've been asked today 'what's on your mind'? Today -- it's this......... the words of  R.L. Sharpe --------


 "Each is given a bag of tools,
A shapeless mass,
A book of rules;
And each must make,
Ere life has flown,
A stumbling block
Or a stepping stone."

I don't know what yours is but I'm sure it's good. And if you'll ask me about mine, it is a path strewn with stepping stones, big and small. Now it's up to God to decide where He's going to take me.

Sometimes they're small stones meant to shape up a huge boulder one sweet day. Small steps taken moment-to-moment day-by-day. And then again a few are huge boulders which I could be very proud of but then seriously foresight tells me it could be broken down to pieces too. That would depend on the great plan He may have in store for me. After all, man will plan all that he can or might but God always has the last word on it. Mom would say ...  'You just do what you can.. or work on what He allows you to work on and hang on to the faith that He cares a lot about you. He will work things out for best.'

So to some out there who are not so clear as to what God wants, just stop and see what your bag of tools are and decide what to do with them. God gives us plenty to work on. Aside from what we know of talent, skills, aptitudes, abilities....  there's also the bag of hope, courage, strength, inspiration, faith, compassion, and even so much more. It can mean a lot of things but which serve one big purpose....  to help you become the person He meant you to be. You know what, if there is anything we should be asking God for......   it's to learn to see our lives through His eyes. Work with Him --- not against Him.

What bag of tools do you carry through life?
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Have a lovely weekend of peace, joy, love, and blessings.

LIFE IS A JOURNEY OF FAITH

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This morning I got this nice email from a good friend. Let's leave the letter alone in respect to a wonderful person and friend.

But, let me tell you my story.....

I was in a similar situation in my life.. Doing something important and yet not what I really wanted. Yet keeping the hope alive that God would finally send me something right up my alley in passion and interest. My fond dreams materialized.

I was bored with that and although I gave it my best shot it wasn't really me. While in it something got me to thinking ... in retrospect. Maybe God wanted me to be simply there for the moment... maybe there was something God wanted me to acquire in skill or ability or spiritual attitude.... maybe there was special work God wanted me to do for Him right there with who I am, with what I have, and with whose company I was.

So to make a long story short, I refocused and realigned my sight to the realities of the moment. Knocked my head to tow the line and kicked my heart to stop it from wandering elsewhere. My prayers became different. --- I simply posed one question to myself: What is it going to be, faith or no faith?? I made the decision of faith... apparently a not so easy decision or choice. But I did what I thought God wanted me to do --- DECIDE to have faith... and like He said even the size of a mustard seed. And the rest is up to Him.

Did my life improve? Far beyond my expectations. Nope, I'm not rich yet......... hahahah. But in matters most essential to life, heart, and living, I think God is so generous in His blessings. Transformation wasn't done overnight.. took some years.. and struggles or battles of faith. A roller coaster ride, so to speak. One thing I learned from those struggles... when one decides to have faith -- God will make sure that you will keep it. One other thing I learned -- faith is a journey.. small ones, big ones, one or two or several.. which we take day by day, every minute, every hour. A life of faith is what God requires from His children. There is no other option.

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May your own journey of faith be a blessed one. Keep the faith. Trust HIM.